Justin J. Petrick

I don’t have a vision for my life. You may have one for your life, and that’s great. But I don’t. I mean, I do, but I don’t. Well, I suppose that would depend on what one’s definition would be for ‘vision.’ But what is a vision? Is it a 5 year plan? Is it some preconceived notion of what the ideal life is? Maybe it is a specific job or profession. Maybe it is the number of kids, or what your spouse would look like, or where you think you will be living with your family.  My vision is not that detailed, at all.  Hence, my reference to not having a vision, well, having one, but not having one.

What I have learned in my life, combined with the infinite power and ability of God and His love, is that when I have a detailed vision for my life, I end up putting God in a box. He may give me a glimpse of a passion, plan, or vision, but I seem to wreck it when my mind takes it and runs with it. Then it is not God’s vision anymore, but mine. It is as if I pervert His vision for my life because there can be so many unkowns that our brains, purely by their nature, desires to fill in those blanks as much as they can.  And they do if we are not careful. And my mind is so analytical, analyzing everything 6 ways from Sunday, that it is easy for me to pervert God’s vision for my life into my own.

So what has my vision become, if you can call it one? Its simply depending on God for direction and placing one foot forward at a time. It really is that simple. Not really caring about what is next, because you know God has it figured out, but simply worrying about what He has for you in the here and now, or your current task and to do it to the best of your ability.  I mean, lets face it. If we believe God has our life planned out, which He does, why worry about the details, especially the future ones?  Let us look at some scriptures:

Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV): For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Here we clearly see that God has a plan for us, one that we can have hope in.

Psalm 139:16 (NIV): Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.

Here we see that God has literally established a plan for our life, or prepared our life even before we were born.  How crazy is that.  If you struggle with purpose for your life, God has given you a purpose before you were even conceived, one that you have been made perfectly for!

Proverbs 16:9 (NIV): In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.

And lastly, in Proverbs, we see that God gives us direction. And this verse is interesting, because it says that we plan our course in our hearts. But did you know that in Ezekiel 36:26, is says that upon salvation we are given a new, heart of flesh?  And on this new, heart of flesh God has written His new law on it (Jeremiah 31:33; Hebrews 8:12), which is not to love others as we love ourselves, which is Old Testament law, but to love others as God loves us (John 13:34). My point is, I also believe that this new heart that we are given upon salvation has God’s purpose for us written on it.

So how do we find His purpose for us, especially when we don’t know what to do next?  It’s in His presence:

Psalm 16:11 (NIV): You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

When we don’t know what to do is precisely when we need to be in God’s presence. In God’s presence is our path of life. And this has worked for me, tremendously! Rather than focusing on what I think my life should look like, I have been focusing on God, seeking Him first, and He literally brings the next steps to me.  Rather than worrying on what to do next, I just enter God’s presence and worship Him. Because I have focused on God, seeking Him first in all I do (Matthew 6:33), He has brought me a wife, a job as a firefighter, a job working on an ambulance, favor to accept a Field Training Officer position in my first 8 months of employment, and favor in paramedic school.

2 years ago, barely even a year ago, I would not have thought this is what my life would look like now. I would have had no idea.  If I would have focused on what I thought I wanted, or if I would have made my own plan for my life, I most likely would have missed out on all these opportunities that God has had for me.  I would have been so occupied with trying to do life in my own strength and willpower, I would have been to distracted to hear His direction and missed the doors He had opened for me. And not only has God been faithful in showing me His plans and what to do next, He has kept me busy!

All I have done is focused on Him. Life can be so complicated. We really simplify life down when we don’t worry about the details and trust that God has them all worked out, and we simply enjoy life in His presence, in His peace and love.

When you don’t know what to do next, seek God. Shift your focus from your circumstances to His goodness. Worship Him, pray, and read His Word. Not only will peace fall upon you, but so will His plan for you. Do I have a vision for my life? Yes. It is seeking God first in all I do, placing one foot in front of the other and letting Him take care of what’s next.